Posts Tagged Fish Types

Fish make great pets, as their beautiful and vivid colors attract the owners as well as guests. There are many different types of fish that can be owned as pet. Here are some of the most popular pet fish breeds.

Danio:

Danio fish are known for their activeness, vigilance and liveliness. Their hyperactive behavior makes them great pets as they often participate in underwater acrobatic maneuvers. Since Danio fish have black and white striped appearance, therefore they are sometimes casually referred to as ‘Zebra’ fish. Its major setback is that they are a bit aggressive, usually because of their vigorous temperament. However, their small size enables them to thrive in a tank that has other larger breeds of fish. This fish breed mostly eats flaked food, and are likely to easily survive in any changes to their environment.

Goldfish:

Since Goldfish are quite hardy and do not need specialized fish care, therefore they are the most popular type of fish for home aquariums. This fish breed is the domesticated descendants of the Prussian carp fish. It is generally bred for selective characteristics, and hence comes in different color patterns. Besides their typical golden orange color, different color variations of goldfish include white, orange, yellow and black. Some goldfish also have the silver or gray color, which is a preferred characteristic as they are likely to produce distinctive color patterns when bred.

Gourami:

Gourami fish are pretty intelligent and can often be trained to follow some easy visual commands. They are enjoyable to care for, and make great pets for young kids as a training project. They have russet or blue stripes on their body, making them visually attractive. Although this fish breed is generally very peaceful, however they can often become very hostile towards smaller fish, or other male Gourami fish. It is best to keep these fish in larger tanks, with a lot of shelters to prevent aggressiveness in them.

Plecostomus:

Plecostomus, also known as Pleco, are bottom-feeding fish that are inhabitant of Central and South America. Their insatiable appetite for algae makes them great pets, as this helps in keeping home aquariums free from excessive algae growth. Since Pleco fish are omnivorous, they thrive best when their diet includes both plant and meat ingredients. They mostly feed at night, and are not active during daytime.

Pet fish are of different types. They are commonly divided into three categories, which include coldwater, marine (saltwater fish and corals), and tropical.

Following are a few helpful tips to consider while buying fish as pet.

Coldwater Fish:

Coldwater fish are a good starting point for the beginners and are relatively easy to keep as compared to marine and tropical fishes. Goldfish is the most common type of coldwater fishes.

Marine Fish:

Marine are mostly comprises of saltwater fish and corals. These fish are wonderful and appealing to keep, however they can be a little more costly and their maintenance levels are also a bit higher. At a minimum, a heater and saltwater is usually required to keep these fishes.

Tropical Fish:

All of the tropical fish need a heater with a temperature of at least 25C. Some of the groups in this category include:

Community Tropical Fish: They are usually peaceful and easy to keep.

African Cichlids: They are mostly bright colorful fish, which can be aggressive at times. They are available in a number of sizes.

South American Cichlids: They are beautiful fish, some of which can grow quite large and can be aggressive.

Odd Bods: There are many different types of these fish, which have an interesting appearance or are just extraordinary.

It is important to know that different types of fish occupy different levels of water. For example, if you already have bottom dwellers, such as catfish, then it is better for you to go for a top dweller or mid-level dweller in its place.

In addition, different types of fish have specific temperaments, aggressive or peaceful, and are either nocturnal or diurnal. It is highly recommended to get a proper guidance from the professional fish seller on the number of fish to keep in a specific amount of water.